Retirement on the public dollar

Check out this site to see how much you're paying these former public officials to sit around and breathe.

http://data.lohud.com/labor/retire_form_bing....

These people worked and paid into a pension fund with every paycheck. They are not getting this money for nothing.

Mr. Nice Guy, Some colleges are charging over $50,000 a yr for students to come there. Students often are debt loaded before they get out and work after 4-5 years for college careers. Many students get only a little aid to pursue their career dreams. When they get or if they can get a descent job after graduation, it must be paid back. Why are you criticising money they earn and put into pensions for retirement? Why don't you criticise the lifetime welfare handout people that are unproductive to society and a draim on everyone?

The era of the defined benefit pension has sunsetted for the Private Sector. Most people in the private sector are now in 401(K)'s (if their Employer offers anything) and the value is not guaranteed by anyone.

The taxpayers guarantee the value of the NYS Retirement System's defined benefit pension plans. I believe this needs to be changed.

I think the public sector employees should be treated like the rest of us and be enrolled in a 401(K) type of plan - where risk of loss of value is passed from the Employer to the Employee.

As for the specific listing that I saw in the above link, most of the folks were probably Tier 1 of the NYSERS or NYSTRS (didn't see any NYSPFRS). As Tier 1, they contributed none of their own money - their guaranteed pension is funded 100% by the taxpayer.

Just my $0.02

Tugboat

Tugboat You should have gone to college and become a teacher. Sounds like your bitter.

Let's take the #1 earner, as an example: Mr. George Philip, earning $261,037 per year in his retirement. I don't know if tugboat is right or not about the "paid in" system, but even if... There's no way this man paid enough money to fund his retirement for that level. In four years - not counting COLA, which is part of the package - he'll make over $1 million. With a 401k, we private-enterprise folks are limited in how much we can contribute annually to our funds, which are _not_ guaranteed to have any particular value when we retire. For 2009 & 2010, our maximum contribution is the lesser of 100% of our salary, or $49,000.

Even if this gentleman contributed $49,000 per year over 40 years, he'd make that back - everything else considered equal - in 8 years. If he stays retired for, say, 12 years, then he's made $1 million off of the public - tax free at the state level. Of course, he could - perish the thought - expire sooner, rather than later. I don't know what the rules are concerning his spouse, if any, in that case. Does she continue to draw his pension until she dies, too?

Is it the goal of working for the public sector to make millionaires of our functionaries? They do not produce value; they perform a necessary evil in supporting the smooth operation of society so that others _can_ produce value.

Considering the notion that "he put his time in": if I work for a private company for 30 years, I get nothing but a handshake - maybe a gold watch - after I retire. Why should public servants make out so much better - especially when it's coming out of the tax-payers' pockets?

As being a public sector employee, I can tell you that I give up things for the benefits I am getting.

Number one, I am not paid what a private sector person is. I make about 1/2 of what I could in the private sector, which is okay with me, because of the for-mentioned benefit.

Number two, the ability to just go and argue for a pay-raise. Private sectors folks can just go and ask for a pay-raise when ever they want. They might not get it, but at least they can ask. Not me.

There are perks for working for the government and there are draw backs. In the end, it is up to the person to decide what job to take, benefits should always come into the equation.

Don't forget, you could choose not to work and rake in millions in welfare.